Beech, American

Fagus grandifolia: The All-American Beech

beech

beechnuts

Tree trivia: Beechnut chewing gum had nothing to do with the Beech tree or the seeds it produces. It was, however, the name and logo of a company that made candy, and was my favorite chewing gum as a kid.

The American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) is found from Nova Scotia, southwest to northern Florida (down to Alachua County) and over to the Mississippi River and into eastern Texas,  eastern oklahoma,  and northwest Arkansas. Paleobiologists tell us that at one time the beech was found through most of North America and could grow there now. But, because of the ice ages they disappeared from the western two-thirds of the continent save for some in the mountains of Northeastern Mexico. Environmentally beech is found with maples, birches, the basswood, black cherry, southern magnolia, eastern white pine, red spruce, several hickories and oaks.

American Beech

Beech trees begin producing seeds around 40-years old, and by 60 can be producing huge amounts. They don’t produce every year and can cycle anywhere from two to eight years. In northern and central states the beech flowers in late April or early may when the new leaves are about one-third grown. They are quite vulnerable to spring frosts. The seeds ripen between September and November. Two to four nuts are usually found in one bur. Heavy frost can cause the bur to open and drop its seeds. There are about 1,600 seeds to a pound.

Beech seeds, also called mast, are sought after by a large variety of birds and mammals, including mice, squirrels, chipmunks, black bear, deer, foxes, ruffed grouse, ducks, and bluejays. Beech wood is used for flooring, furniture, turned products, veneer, plywood, railroad ties, baskets, pulp, charcoal, rough lumber, shoe lasts, buttons, bowls and barrels for aging beer. It is also preferred by those with wood burning stoves because of its high density and good burning qualities. Creosote made from beech wood is used internally and externally as a medicine for people and animals.

Cultivated Beech tree and bee hives in Banner Elk North Carolina

From the human point of view, the American Beech provides quite a few edibles. The inner bark is edible, young leaves are quite tasty while they are soft. The sweet seeds are very edible and can be crushed into a butter. The nuts have a low amount of fagin which is slightly toxic and is found in the skin of the kernel (roasting allows that skin to be easily rubbed off.)  The European beech, F. sylvatica, has more fagin and has to be used more carefully. Beechnut oil does not have any fagin and was used in Europe for centuries for cooking (and as a hair tonic.)  Seeds have been crushed, boiled, and the nourishing liquid drank. They were also ground up and added to cornmeal and berries to make a bread.  Beech sawdust has also been mixed with flour to extend it when making bread in times of scarcity. Raw nuts should not be eaten to excess.

Fagus grandifolia means “edible large leaves. “Fagus” comes from the Greek verb Fagito, which means to eat and was the name of the European beech, F. sylvatica (edible of the woods.)  The species name is Latin.  To go back a little further “fagito” came from Akkadian “paglu” meaning strong.

 

Green Deane’s “Itemized” Plant Profile

IDENTIFICATION:

Leaves alternate, simple, elliptical to oblong-ovate, 2 1/2 to 5 1/2 inches long, pinnately-veined, 11-14 pairs of veins, with each vein ending in a sharp distinct tooth, shiny green above, very waxy and smooth, slightly paler below. Male flowers borne on globose heads hanging from a slender 1 inch stalk, female flowers borne on shorter spikes, appearing just after leaves in the spring.  Nuts are irregularly triangular, shiny brown, found in pairs within a woody husk covered with recurved spines,

TIME OF YEAR:

Nuts ripen in fall, young leaves in spring while tender.

ENVIRONMENT:

Old forests, neither dry nor wet, found with maples, birches and oaks.

METHOD OF PREPARATION:

Inner bark is edible, young leaves edible, mature seeds (best to remove their brown covering.) Can be roasted and or made into a nut butter. The oil is good for cooking.

 

{ 18 comments… add one }
  • name September 13, 2012, 7:31 am

    cool, another salad tree! to bad they don’t hardly ever have more than a dozen nuts in the south. look for little parisitic plants at the base. the name escapes me, but it starts with an e (I think).

    Reply
    • C July 17, 2016, 10:49 am

      epiphytes?

      Reply
  • Gary M November 5, 2012, 8:10 am

    Re: fagin. are you sure you don’t mean saponin

    Reply
    • Green Deane November 5, 2012, 8:18 am

      Fagin is presumed to be a saponin.

      Reply
  • Berger November 21, 2013, 7:16 pm

    It’d be great to see a video on this one!

    Reply
  • Chris Hoyle November 26, 2013, 9:02 pm

    I have 2-3 Beech trees the two Biggest are 8’Across , I was wonder would you know the the yrs of say a Tree that size also how valuable is the wood ? I’m dare not cut them for the For their my own forest . Thank you .

    Reply
  • Tommy December 11, 2013, 10:10 am

    Hi there

    Do you know if the husk surrounding the nuts contain any toxic components?
    I would like to use them in gastronomy.

    Best regards,

    Tommy

    Reply
  • Charles August 31, 2015, 5:56 pm

    We’ve got a big beech and when I look at the nuts (which are falling on the ground in quantity now, late August, I wonder how you prepare them as a food? They’re quite small, and the husk seems very difficult to remove. Thanks, Charles

    Reply
  • Twinky September 23, 2015, 1:57 pm

    I believe the Beech-Nut gum originally used oil from beech nuts, thus the name.

    Reply
  • Mjolnir January 20, 2016, 2:16 pm

    @name ‘Epifagus virginiana’, sometimes listed as ‘E. americana’, common name ‘Beech-drops’, – obligate and parasitic annual that has no chlorophyll.

    Reply
  • nancy January 23, 2018, 2:12 am

    does anyone know why the beech tree only produces nuts every 2-8 years?

    Reply
    • Erik April 10, 2020, 9:18 pm

      Many trees (and even bamboo) with edible seeds have mast cycles. By producing low (or in bamboo, no) seed crops for several years, the population of (seed) predators is kept low. When the tree then produces a massive mast crop, only a fraction of the seeds can be eaten by the small populations of their enemies, so much remains to germinate and maintain the tree population. If a tree produced a consistent crop every year, critters would multiply to make full use of the available food, and few seeds would be left to germinate.

      Reply
  • Julian February 11, 2018, 4:16 am

    Around me in Tennessee they seem to prefer growing on north slopes.

    Reply
  • Nigel Olin July 5, 2018, 7:12 am

    I’ve been looking for quite a while, would anyone max number a person can safely eat?

    Reply
  • David October 23, 2018, 1:32 pm

    My Mother and Grand- Mother have a Cough Syrup recipe calling for Beech Wood Creosote and wonder if ANYONE out there has some “kicking around” their closets or Kitchens that I may have??? Or know where I may get some….. Thank you.

    Reply
  • Wal Nussbaum May 3, 2022, 11:58 am

    Erratum: Seeds have been crushed, boiled, and the nourishing liquid drank(sic).

    Correct: have been DRUNK

    Reply

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